AKIPRESS.COM - The government of Mongolia and the Asian Development Bank (ADB) signed a $15 million additional financing agreement to help improve access to quality pre-primary, primary, and secondary education in Mongolia on March 3, Montsame reports.

ADB East Asia Department Director General Muhammad Ehsan Khan and Minister of Finance Javkhlan Bold signed the agreement in Ulaanbaatar.

"Economic recession caused by the COVID-19 pandemic resulted in significant cuts in the education budget. Unless we expand school facilities, we risk exacerbating missed educational opportunities caused by the pandemic, especially for disadvantaged children," Muhammad Ehsan Khan said.

The ongoing $50 million Sustaining Access to and Quality of Education During Economic Difficulties Project was approved in November 2017 to help the government improve access to and the quality of pre-primary, primary, and secondary education. The project is constructing and expanding a total of 21 schools and kindergartens in Gobi-Altai, Darkhan-Uul, and Govisumber provinces, and Ulaanbaatar city. It is also supporting curriculum and assessment system reforms, supplying educational materials, and training teachers, school managers, and local education administrators.

The additional financing project will scale up the scope of the ongoing project by constructing, expanding, and furnishing three more schools and six more kindergartens. A total of 30 schools and kindergartens will be built and expanded under the project. The buildings will also incorporate climate adaptation and resilience measures to minimize climate-related disruptions, as well as increase energy efficiency. The project is funded by ADB's concessional ordinary capital resources and is expected to be completed in February 2027.